Fibermania

A Well Rounded Life

I confess to being a workaholic. I am goal oriented and usually must finish a task before beginning a new one. I am also very competitive and as a first born, always feel that I must be the leader. All this A-1 behavior can be a curse. It prevents having time to stop and smell the roses.

I am working on changing my old habits. I believe one can. That is half the battle. I hate the thought of regretting anything, and especially moments of happiness that were postponed because of some idea that work should come first.

My husband Dave, the new blogger and now babe-magnet ( he gets tons of emails from women who are relishing his every word!) is my newest focus. I am just now getting to know him, in his new incarnation, the Author and Retiree.

After 27 years of marriage I just discovered his preference for Miracle Whip! Of course we both are amazed that he can write as well as he does. This is so thrilling that I cannot possibly describe my surprise.

So where is this leading? Well, I am in the midst of moving from one weekend of workshops and lectures to another weekend of workshops and lectures and up to my eyeballs in fabric dyeing, pattern assembly and kit making, not to mention correspondence and contract negotiations for future work. Phew!

But Dave bought a new pair of boots, which are designed to make it easier for him to walk without incident for a longer period of time. This is so important for us as a couple. To be able to take a walk (working off dinner!) and spend time outdoors and off the couch.

They are wet, and you'll soon know why.

I decided that today was a good day to pull an hour away from work to take a nature walk and try out those new boots. There are plenty of lovely nature preserves near where we live that we never have encountered, mostly because the bugs are horrendous when the weather is nice, and when the weather is bad, no one thinks to visit them. Here it is March, the sun is out, the wind is not too bad and the temp is 40 degrees. We have gloves, hats and good coats, so what is keeping us from going out? Nuttin!

OK I am a wimp. I like to be warm...just in case I get cold.

We tramped through the high country and wandered down to the bogs where we found a man-made recycled-plastic walk way. This path floats above the water and is kinda scary to cross as it moves and slurps and overflows with water, if it carries two people at once. We found this out the hard way and Dave's new boots got soaked. Fortunately the water didn't get through to his socks.

At this time of year the red-winged blackbirds aren't raising the racket they will be making in May. It was almost silent except for the cacklings of the cranes in the high thermals above us. Visually imperceptible overhead, their cries let us know their presence. We saw raccoon dens, rabbit latrines and dog tracks, but no other living creatures, this time... I was making a lot of noise myself, scaring away any wildlife.

I could have been working. I could have been organizing or cleaning up paperwork. I could have been filing orders, but moments like this are what makes a memory. And in the end I would rather have the memories.